Clinical Investigation of French Maritime Pine Bark Extract on Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as compared to Methylphenidate and Placebo: Part 1: Efficacy in a Randomised Trial

Clinical Investigation of French Maritime Pine Bark Extract on Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as compared to Methylphenidate and Placebo: Part 2: Oxidative Stress and Immunological Modulation

“…Most research on nutritional supplements or medication in ADHD primarily assesses effects on behaviour (Konofal et al, 2008;Rucklidge et al, 2018). This trial, however, also takes into account a broad range of immune and oxidative biomarkers, and the neurochemical biomarker NPY, in order to potentially identify processes underlying behavioural improvement by PBE or MPH (Weyns et al, 2022). This is the first report on the effects of PBE on in vivo lipid soluble antioxidant and zinc levels, CAT, SOD and GPX activity, and XO, CAT, SOD, GPX and ApoJ gene expression, as well as on levels of cytokines and antibodies in paediatric ADHD patients.…”

“…Baseline daily consumption of fruit and/or vegetables (and thus polyphenol intake) was assessed using a Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) (Weyns et al, 2022).…”

“…Eighty-eight ADHD patients (70 % male, 89 % Caucasian, mean age 10.1 years) were randomised to placebo (n = 30), PBE (n = 32) or MPH (n = 26) treatment; 76 finished their 10-week study period (Weyns et al, 2022). The 10-week biological sample could not be obtained from the dropouts (14 %; n = 5 placebo, n = 5 PBE, n = 2 MPH) (Fig.…”

“…French Maritime Pine Bark Extract (PBE; Pinus Pinaster, Pycnoge-nol®, Horphag Research), a patented, proprietary polyphenol-rich herbal extract from French maritime pine (Pinus pinaster Aiton) bark, standardised to contain 70 ± 5 % procyanidins, has antioxidant and immune modulating properties and was therefore selected as a food supplement for this trial (D'Andrea, 2010;Dvoráková et al, 2006;Hsu et al, 2021;Robertson et al, 2020;Weyns et al, 2022;Wilson et al, 2010). Due to its strong antioxidative and anti-inflammatory capacity, PBE may be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of various chronic diseases including asthma and cardiovascular diseases (Nattagh-Eshtivani et al, 2022).…”

“…Therapeutic potential in ADHD was already suggested before but a more extensive analysis of the underlying mechanisms is needed. This double-blind, randomised controlled trial aims to make a contribution to this by investigating the antioxidant and immune modulating effects of PBE in ADHD therapy through analysis of an extensive series of biomarkers, as compared to MPH and placebo treatment (Dvoráková et al, 2006;Weyns et al, 2022). Results of this study, therefore, will increase insight into ADHD aetiology and (dietary) treatment options, which is highly desired by medical staff, parents and patients.…”